An idea to improve life in Victoria

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1 Project #: 1 Title: Urban Alive Pop-Up Native Bee Apiary Amount Requested: $11,500 Start Date: Feb 2018 Completion Date: Oct 2018 Location: Community Garden in Victoria Project Champion: Pollinator Partnership Canada, Border Free Bees and Emily Carr University A native bee 'apiary' installation designed by Border Free Bees and Emily Carr University of Art + Design. The apiary will be home to many types of tunnel nesting native bees, incorporate multiple bee home designs and materials, in a captivating and appealing way. The apiary also will feature information on bees, pollination, and food security. Native bees are essential for food production and natural ecosystems, yet they are largely overlooked, and few people know of their importance or appreciate their diversity and beauty. There are over 400 types of native bees in BC, they are mostly solitary (do not live in colonies like honey bees), and are not aggressive. The installation will be unique and welcoming; a portable design that can be brought to new locations in our area each year. Community participation in managing and monitoring the native bees will be fostered. A public education day at the apiary will feature local experts and hands on activities. The installation will provide an educational place for children and adults, the native bees will help to pollinate urban gardens. It will be a sanctuary in the city where all can connect with nature. The Native Bee Apiary is a fusion of art and science. The unique and professional design will be an asset to the host location and the city. The moveable nature of the installation will provide benefit to multiple communities over many years. It will contribute to our reputation as a beautiful, forward thinking community that respects nature and values sustainability. The apiary will enhance native bee communities in downtown areas which will help pollinate urban gardens, contributing to sustainable urban food production. It will be a focal point for education and provide inspiration for conservation action.

2 Project #: 2 Title: Closing the Loop at the Compost Education Centre Amount Requested: $2,000 Start Date: Jan 10, 2018 Completion Date: Oct 31, 2018 Location: The Compost Education Centre at 1216 North Park Street Victoria, BC V8T 1C9 Project Champion: Victoria Compost Education Centre The Compost Education Centre's (CEC) aquaponics system is an amazing example of closed-loop systems and maximizing the outputs of a system; fish poop in the water, the water is then pumped up into the grow bed where food plants such as lettuce and kale filter out the nitrates, using them in their production. The plant-filtered water is then cycled back into the fish tank. What would make this system even more awesome? Further closing the loop by installing a solar panel and battery to keep the pump circulating and showcasing to Victoria residents how they might use renewable energy in their homes and gardens. This is intended to be a first step in a graduated plan to convert the entire CEC to solar power. Over 10,000 people visit the CEC annually and the aquaponics delights visitors of all ages while providing an interactive example of maximizing food growing in small spaces, important lessons to be taught as the City continues to densify. The CEC is known as an educational hub for sustainable living strategies. We provide public education programs on urban organic food production, composting and waste diversion, rainwater harvesting and habitat conservation, and we would like to highlight renewable energy as well. Including an example of solar power in our teaching gardens will allow us to engage community members in Victoria to work with nature to reduce their footprint on the earth. Offering a tangible and accessible sustainable system encourages and inspires people to action.

3 Project #: 3 Title: Arts & Alzheimer s Amount Requested: $1,500 Start Date: Jan 2018 Completion Date: Dec 2018 Location: Silver Threads, 2340 Richmond Rd. Victoria, BC Project Champion: We Rage We Weep Alzheimer Foundation Arts & Alzheimer's is an art and music participation program for seniors with dementia still living at home with their caregivers; stimulating minds and supporting caregivers. Our goals are to engage the mind, lift the spirits, encourage independence, promote socialization to fight isolation and loneliness and provide a respite to support caregivers to help them keep loved ones at home as long as possible to assist with aging in place. We utilize certified art therapists and highly qualified musicians with a special focus on working with seniors and those with dementia. People who feel included in and supported by their community are happier and healthier no matter what challenges they face.

4 Project #: 4 Title: Next Steps Employment Program Amount Requested: $25,000 Start Date: April 1, 2018 Completion Date: March 31, 2019 Location: Our Place Pandora Ave, Victoria BC, V8v 3P4 Project Champion: Our Place Society The Empowering Employment program will create pathways to work for Victoria s most vulnerable citizens. Building a network of willing employers, offering training, work experience and job matching, this project will support people affected by trauma to start or get back into work. Based on a successful project in Winnipeg, this program creates a network of willing volunteers around vulnerable people who are ready to work hard and make meaningful changes in their lives. This program starts with the absolute basics; we will be offering pre-employment skills like communication and professional behaviour alongside occupational skills like food service and computer data entry. The main aim is to prepare participants for a job placement with a local employer that is ready to support employees who have struggled with trauma. By supporting both the employee and the employer, the project will help fill gaps in the market and offer vulnerable adults the stability and dignity of employment. A community is only as good as how it treats its most vulnerable citizens. In a city with the lowest unemployment rate in Canada, our vulnerable population is still systematically excluded from the economy due to stigma and lack of support. Moreover, socially minded employers lack the skills to help on their own, and are justifiably anxious about hiring vulnerable staff. By engaging our citizens, training participants and supporting employers, we can be a better community and a stronger economy. This project will work with three professional staff, a dozen volunteer trainers, participant support volunteers, and willing employers, giving their time to accommodate vulnerable employees. A full community effort, this program offers a wrap-around model of support and encouragement.

5 Project #: 5 Title: Arts Project for Marginalized People Amount Requested: $20,000 Start Date: Jan. 1, 2018 Completion Date: Dec. 31, 2018 Location: Multiple locations: James Bay New Horizons, Cook St. Activity Centre, Wellspring Support, Victoria Arts Council, & Beacon Community Services Project Champion: Victoria Arts Council The Victoria Arts Council (VCA) will expand Patrick Smith s successful Arts for Marginalized People Program in the Victoria area. With James Bay New Horizons; the Cook St. Activity Centre; Beacon Community Services and the Wellspring Support Group, VCA will expand this interactive, healing arts program for people marginalized by disability, poverty or advanced age. The program consists of singing and playing instruments, complemented by intermittent sessions of theatre, puppetry, dance and the visual arts. The program provides participants opportunities for learning, self-expression, mental stimulation, enjoyment socialization and improved physical and mental health. This will address the issues of isolation and marginalization suffered by those who are ill, impoverished or aged. Isolation of seniors and people with disabilities especially has been established as a major concern of social agencies. 800 seniors in James Bay alone have been designated as isolated in their apartments. This program aims to create stimulating opportunities that will attract such people to get out of their homes, socialize and engage in arts activities that stress inclusion, social interaction and mental stimulation thus improving mental and physical health. Community connections and social bonds will improve for people who previously were not able to participate in arts activities. The project will increase community connections and social bonds for people who often cannot participate in arts or cultural activities because of physical limitations or low income. The project will enrich the community by including marginalized citizens and by providing opportunities for other citizens to nurture and interact with those who are so marginalized. Creating strong social bonds through creative participation can improve the quality of life and sense of safety and happiness to people in the community and lead to ongoing community initiatives led by citizens for the improvement of their community.

6 Project #: 6 Title: One Vital Sign The Establishment of a Digital Community Resource Board Amount Requested: $22,055 Start Date: Early 2018 Completion Date: June 2018 Location: Victoria High School Project Champion: Vining Street Party Society, Victoria High School, Greater Victoria School District ONE VITAL SIGN will upgrade the existing Victoria High School s (VHS) Information sign to a digital community resource board. The sign (6'X8') will be utilized by the community and the school to alert the public to upcoming events, community resources and emergencies. The sign will operate year round and represents an opportunity to increase engagement between the community, school and the school district. ONE VITAL SIGN will address issues of light pollution by appropriate technology. All requests for access to ONE VITAL SIGN will be treated fairly and equitably under posted protocols and procedures. Access to the sign will be free for not for profit organizations. For profit organizations, if engaged in free community activities, will be charged a nominal fee. Access and information flow will be managed by a joint school/community committee. It is envisioned that the City of Victoria itself will utilize ONE VITAL SIGN to alert citizens as to upcoming meetings, activities and events, even emergencies. ONE VITAL SIGN enables our citizens to expand their knowledge and participation in our community. ONE VITAL SIGN enables small and large groups to reach out to the community. ONE VITAL SIGN reminds our readers that Sir Frances Bacon s words information is knowledge and knowledge is power are as apt and relevant today as when originally declared. ONE VITAL SIGN knows an informed population makes better decisions. ONE VITAL SIGN fills the information gap left by the disappearing community papers. ONE VITAL SIGN is committed to an open society with free distribution of vital information.

7 Project #: 7 Title: Victoria Bicycle Music Festival Amount Requested: $4,350 Start Date: June 2018 Completion Date: July 28, 2018 Location: Various outdoor public spaces Project Champion: Victoria Bicycle Music Festival organizing team In July 2017, a group of five Victoria-based musicians and community organizers (together with a solid crew of volunteers, some fantastic performers, and a wonderful audience) brought people from a variety of backgrounds and a range of ages together to celebrate community-building, music, cycling and renewable energy will mark the second annual Victoria Bicycle Music Festival, a free, family-friendly, pedal-powered, community event. The festival, which is a mobile event, will take place on July 29th in three outdoor public spaces, with group rides linking the venues. New this year, we are also planning two weekday evening concerts in two other Victoria neighbourhoods in late-june and mid-july. The events will feature a bicycle-powered sound system (which allows audience members to participate in a unique manner by pedaling stationary generator bicycles to power the music) and a diverse line-up of local musicians performing various genres of music. As a new collective of organizers not yet affiliated with a non-profit society, the Participatory Budgeting Project offers us a unique opportunity for access to funding that will support us in establishing these events as long-term additions to Victoria s community arts and sustainability landscapes. Festivals promote diversity, they bring neighbours into dialogue, they increase creativity, they offer opportunities for civic pride, they improve our general psychological well being. In short, they make cities better places to live. This quote from David Binder helps to articulate how the community-based events that we are planning will improve the City of Victoria. We are excited to bring together a diverse array of Victorians, who might not normally meet at a concert or music festival. The events also promote active, sustainable transportation in a celebratory and inviting way and serve as a platform for demonstrating renewable energy.

8 Project #: 8 Title: FED Learning Garden Amount Requested: $16,000 Start Date: February 2018 Completion Date: September 2018 Location: 735 Broughton St. Greater Victoria Public Library Central Branch) Project Champion: Food Eco District and LifeCycles Our project is to build a Learning Garden at the downtown branch of the Greater Victoria Public Library. The Learning Garden will be a beautiful community space and an outdoor classroom, a place where the public can learn about a variety of topics such as how to save seeds, identify plant varieties, and grow food in urban spaces. As a community hub and an educational space, the Library is an ideal location for a Learning Garden. The Library is already home to the Victoria Seed Library, a non-profit project that saves heritage local seed varieties for gardeners to share. The Learning Garden will provide the Seed Library with a demonstration site so they can teach citizens how to steward a regionally adapted seed collection. As a Learning Garden, the project will serve first and foremost as an education space for the community, offering seed saving and food growing workshops in an outdoor classroom environment. It will also contribute to food security in the region by turning an under-utilized space into a productive urban garden. Finally, it will animate and beautify public space that is in need of revitalization and place-making, creating a new community space for Victoria citizens to enjoy. Two local non-profits, FED and LifeCycles Project Society, will work with the Library to run ongoing educational programing at the site. FED works with local restaurants to increase the number of urban gardens in the downtown core. LifeCycles runs a number of food-related programs in the region, including the Victoria Seed Library.